BHA warns MPs affordability checks could be 'financially devastating' for British racing

The introduction of blanket affordability checks at low levels of spend following the government's gambling review would be "financially devastating to racing", a committee of MPs has been told.

In written evidence submitted to an inquiry into gambling regulation launched by the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee before Christmas, the BHA said checks already being carried out by operators were hitting the sport's revenues to the tune of "tens of millions of pounds".

The BHA also called for the gambling review white paper to be published as quickly as possible as continued delays were having a "significant adverse impact".

The call for evidence announced by the DCMS committee late last year is separate to the government's own gambling review which was launched in December 2020. The much-delayed proposals set to emerge from the review are expected to include the government's thinking on the controversial subject of affordability checks. Some punters have already been subject to the checks, including intrusive requests for financial information such as bank statements.

In its submission, the BHA said the government's review should strike a balance between consumer protection and freedom. It added: "Given racing’s close links to betting, it is overwhelmingly the case that any changes to gambling legislation and regulation – even if not directly targeted at the specific relationship between racing and betting – can cause significant unintended consequences for the British racing industry and associated revenue streams."

On the specific subject of affordability checks, the BHA said it was "vitally important" that any measures should not impact "the vast majority of customers who are betting safely on a wide variety of betting products, including horseracing".

It added: "We do not support blanket measures on affordability, and believe that if measures are to be introduced, they should be targeted at the individual and reflect their specific circumstances. 

"We strongly believe that such blanket checks – floated as low as £100 per month in a Gambling Commission call for evidence in late 2020 – would be highly damaging. Furthermore, such limits would not achieve the government’s desired outcomes around customer protection [especially with the potential to push them into the black market], and would represent disproportionate restrictions on customer freedom. 

"The implications of this would be financially devastating to racing – with tens of millions of pounds in lost revenues – at a time when its finances have already taken a significant hit due to the Covid-19 pandemic."

The BHA said its "strong view" was that financial checks could be achieved in non-intrusive fashion by operators.

It also argued the nature and level at which affordability checks should be introduced should be subject to a full consultation process and economic impact assessment, and also that parliamentarians should debate the issue "given the significant civil liberties implications for consumers".

Blanket checks on punters would be "highly damaging"

The government's gambling white paper has been the subject of repeated delays for more than a year and is unlikely to be published until the second half of April at the earliest.

The BHA's submission claimed the "continued delay and uncertainty created is causing significant concern and damaging investor confidence in our industry". 

The Gambling Commission has denied mandating the affordability checks already being carried out by operators, but the BHA submission noted there was increasing anecdotal evidence of dissatisfaction from racing fans about affordability checks, which it said were "a direct result of regulatory changes made by the Gambling Commission – in lieu of any progress around the Gambling Act review. This is a growing concern for customer engagement in our sport".

The governing body called for a "clear regulatory environment" to be quickly established, adding that there was "clear evidence of a material decline in customer activity levels on British racing, in part from measures being introduced by betting operators to anticipate or comply with regulatory requirements by the Gambling Commission".

It cited figures from Arena Racing Company which claimed there had been a £280 million reduction in digital betting turnover on racing at its racecourses last year compared to 2019.

"This decline is far above the levels that would be attributed to solely restrictions targeting customers experiencing gambling-related harm," the BHA said, "and scaled up across British racing means a decline of tens of millions of pounds in revenues generated for, and circulated throughout, the industry."

The BHA's submission also called for the government to reform the levy to extend it to all horseracing across the world bet on by British customers and to base it on a percentage of turnover, rather than profit.

The UK Tote Group also addressed the issue of affordability in its submission to the inquiry, noting there had already been "extensive commentary and complaints about the intrusiveness of affordability checks" among racing enthusiasts.

It warned of the dangers of the black market if the wrong regulations were put in place. The Tote's submission said: "The gambling white paper needs to ensure that people who enjoy betting safely can do so freely, as with other similar leisure pursuits.

"It is crucial new gambling regulations do not drive UK betting customers who are currently using regulated operators to use unregulated gambling sites which operate outside of UK laws."

It also warned MPs that the government's proposals needed to recognise the broader social and economic reach of the gambling industry. The Tote added: "The white paper must not damage the horseracing industry as a by-product of misguided regulations."

Have you been affected by intrusive affordability checks? If so, we would like to hear from you. Email us (editor@racingpost.com) with the subject 'Affordability checks' to share your experiences and contact details 

Read these next:

'The government must remember betting is a pastime enjoyed by millions' - operators' views on affordability checks 

Out-of-control Gambling Commission is either clueless or treating us with contempt 

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